As more and more people become connected worldwide, information and communications technology (ICT) optimists anticipate that the technologies will overcome barriers of geography and distance, providing opportunities within national and across international boundaries for users to have instant access to relevant knowledge and information. Most industrialized countries and some developing countries already are providing many e-government services to their citizens, often with positive outcomes.
In its latest report, entitled 'Information and Communications for Development 2006: Global Trends and Policies,' the bank found that governments in less-developed countries in particular could do much more to deregulate and open up the information-technology and telecommunications markets, which would ultimately lead to greater economic prosperity. Specifically, more competition would allow prices for access to telecommunications networks to come down and allow more people to use the system.
Titled “E-Development: From Excitement to Effectiveness”, the report urges countries to learn from past lessons to implement effective projects.
It has been issued in the lead up to the UN World Summit on Information Society to be held in Tunis from 16 to 18 November, and examines the Internet's record as a tool for development to date, and suggests lessons and policy recommendations to increase the impact and sustainability of e-development projects.
I'm just back from a visit to the Middle East where I've been sharing my unorthodox 'Kalashnikov theory' of e-government at the invitation of the British Council.
To start with, as we try to come to grips with the new challenge of 'transactional government' here in the UK, we might remember there's a wider world out there, struggling with the internet as a new medium for public sector reform.
Germany Pledges $5Mio to Support Development Gateway Web-Based Services Helping Developing Countries
The Development Gateway's services include online public procurement information platforms, aid information management tools, e-government grant management, global online knowledge-sharing communities and support of an extensive network of local enterprises providing web-related services for local development needs.